Eating Disorders Associated With Increased Risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Lifetime prevalence of developing diabetes in this population highest among males.

HealthDay News — Binge eating disorder (BED) and bulimia nervosa (BN) are associated with increased incidence and prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D), according to a study published in the September issue of the International Journal of Eating Disorders.

Anu Raevuori, MD, PhD, from the University of Helsinki, and colleagues examined the prevalence and incidence of T2D in a 2,342 patients treated at the Eating Disorder Unit of Helsinki University versus 9,368 matched general population controls over 16 years. T2D incidence was examined over three stages: before entering treatment for an eating disorder; after entering treatment until the end of the study; and combined any time before, during, and after treatment.

The researchers found that the risk of T2D was increased in patients versus controls (odds ratio, 6.6) before entering treatment for eating disorders. The lifetime prevalence was 5.2% among patients at the end of the study period, compared with 1.7% among controls; prevalence was significantly higher in male patients versus female patients. By the end of the study, every third patient treated for BED had T2D (odds ratio, 12.9) and 4.4% of those with BN had T2D (odds ratio, 2.4)

"Our findings provide strong support for the association between T2D and clinically significant binge eating," the authors write. "Disturbed glucose metabolism may contribute to the onset and maintenance of BED and BN."